GlycA, a marker of acute phase glycoproteins, and the risk of incident type 2 diabetes mellitus: PREVEND study.

BACKGROUND

GlycA is a recently developed glycoprotein biomarker of systemic inflammation that may be predictive of incident type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

METHODS

Analytical performance of the GlycA test, measured on the Vantera® Clinical Analyzer, was evaluated. To test its prospective association with T2DM, GlycA was measured in 4524 individuals from the PREVEND study and a survival analysis was performed with a mean follow-up period of 7.3y.

RESULTS

Imprecision for the GlycA test ranged from 1.3-2.3% and linearity was established between 150 and 1588μmol/l. During the follow-up period, 220 new T2DM cases were ascertained. In analyses adjusted for relevant covariates, GlycA was associated with incident T2DM; hazard ratio (HR) for the highest vs. lowest quartile 1.77 [95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.10-2.86, P=0.01], whereas the association of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) with T2DM was not significant. GlycA remained associated with incident T2DM after additional adjustment for hsCRP; HR 1.71 [1.00-2.92, P=0.04]. A multivariable adjusted analysis of dichotomized subgroups showed that the hazard for incident T2DM was highest in the subgroup with high GlycA and low hsCRP (P=0.03).

CONCLUSIONS

The performance characteristics of the GlycA test reveal that it is suitable for clinical applications, including assessment of the risk of future T2DM.